After more than a three-month test of interviews, boot camps and competitions, Miller and Ratchford will put their skills and talent to the test against the best up-and-coming bull riders in the world and the stars of the PBR’s elite Built Ford Tough Series during the BlueDEF Finals presented by Pneu-Dart at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, on Oct. 9-10.

“It is a huge blessing to make the [BlueDEF] Finals,” Ratchford said. “It was nerve racking being one of the final five trying to make it to the final two. Now that we are advancing, I’m nervous and anxious, but also confident and ready to ride alongside the best in the world.

“When I get there, I’ll want to prove that I can ride just as well as any guy there. Competing against a number of the 2015 [PBR] World Finals qualifiers is only going to make me want it that much more; it will bring out the best in me. As the event draws closer I’m trying to stay calm and follow my list of rules: Rule No. 1: Ride my bull; Rule No. 2: Refer to Rule No. 1.”

Miller said: “Being one of the final two contestants in the BlueDef Bucking Madness is a feeling that’s hard to explain — yet, it’s not a surprising feeling. The last few months, this is what I’ve visualized – this is the exact situation I saw myself in the entire time.

“God has blessed me with a great talent. Riding with the top guys in the world at the BlueDEF Finals, and maybe even the PBR World Finals, is what every kid who sets out to be a bull rider dreams of doing one day. From here on out I will be in the moment and focus on riding one bull at a time; taking full advantage of this amazing opportunity that all those involved have made possible for us.”

Miller and Ratchford will compete alongside the Top 10 stars from the elite Built Ford Tough Series, the Top 30 riders from the BlueDEF Velocity Tour (BDVT), and invites from PBR’s international tours in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico, for their share of the $150,000 BlueDEF Finals total event purse. With $50,000 going to the overall BDVT season champion, and at least $25,000 to the BlueDEF Finals winner, there is lots of money at stake for all the competitors.

Additionally, the overall BlueDEF Velocity Tour champion — the best of the season’s new stars — the top three performers at the BlueDEF Finals, and the top-performing international rider will advance to the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals in Las Vegas on Oct. 21-25. With a good showing this weekend, Miller and Ratchford could be on their way to Las Vegas.

Tickets for the two-day BlueDEF Finals to see Miller and Ratchford in action start at only $18 and are available now at ticketmaster.com and the KFC Yum! Center Box Office.

All of the BlueDEF Finals action will also be streamed live on PBR live at 7 p.m. ET on both Friday and Saturday.

Miller and Ratchford’s journey, from the contest entry process and semifinalist selection, through the Bucking Madness Boot Camp, their initial PBR competition at the BlueDEF Velocity Tour event in Cleveland, Ohio, and ultimately to the BlueDEF Finals in Louisville, is airing as a series of webisodes on BuckingMadness.com. A one-hour special recounting their adventure, “Cowboy Madness,” will also air on CBS Sports Network on Monday, Oct. 19 at 9 p.m. ET. Please visit www.buckingmadness.com for more details.

For more information and the complete event schedule, please view the BlueDEF Finals schedule on www.pbr.com.